Former softball standout Sydney O’Hara returns to SU as assistant coach

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Former Syracuse softball player Sydney O’Hara joined Shannon Doepking’s coaching staff as an assistant coach, according to an SU Athletics release. O’Hara, who pitched and played first base and outfield for the Orange, will work primarily with the team’s pitchers.

O’Hara spent the past three seasons as a pitching coach at Binghamton University, coaching the Bearcats to the America East tournament semifinals in 2019. Following her graduation from SU in 2017, O’Hara coached at nearby Le Moyne College, also serving as a pitching coach.

The Cicero, New York native holds the program record for career saves with 12, including six during her senior season and five the year before, which rank first and second, respectively, for single-season saves. O’Hara’s .476 batting average during her senior year is also a Syracuse single-season record.

“It has always been my dream to return to Syracuse University to share my knowledge and passion for the sport of softball,” O’Hara said in the release. “I’m forever proud to wear the ‘S’ on my chest!”

O’Hara joins the Orange’s coaching staff after three-year assistant coach Michael Steuerwald left the program, becoming the first head coach at Gaston College in Dallas, North Carolina.